Seward's Van Gilder Hotel ranks #4 in Alaska's haunted index

With Halloween approaching, the Van Gilder Hotel in Seward ranks #4 in HauntBound's 2026 index of Alaska's most haunted places. The index ranks 26 Alaska sites by separate published accounts and how far back they go, not by fame or search popularity.

Van Gilder Hotel ranks #4. Idaho businessman E.L. Van Gilder built the hotel in 1916, and it hosted President Warren G. Harding's traveling party in 1923. Two separate published accounts describe activity there. Guests describe a woman in a blue dress on the second floor, associated in local tellings with Fannie Guthery, who was killed at the hotel in 1947, along with cleaning supplies and small objects moved and doors and windows opening or closing on their own. Current management describes the reported presence as benign rather than threatening.

Statewide, the Alaskan Hotel & Bar in Juneau ranks #1 and is Alaska's most famous haunted site.

"We rank by evidence, not legend: independent published accounts, documented history, and how far back the reports go. We don't claim ghosts are real, or that they aren't. We document where the reports concentrate, and we show our work," said Ben Fineman, editor of HauntBound. The ranking shows each site's documented record.

Visiting:Van Gilder Hotel, 308 Adams St., Seward, is a working hotel with rooms for overnight guests.

For media:The full ranking: https://hauntbound.com/most-haunted/alaska/The fact sheet, with cleared images: https://hauntbound.com/press/fact-sheets/alaska/Photo: the Van Gilder Hotel, on the fact sheet.Venue contact: vangilderseward.comA short version follows.

HauntBound (hauntbound.com) is a family-friendly field guide to more than 6,000 documented haunted and historic places across the United States, ranked by published evidence rather than legend. No venue pays to be listed or ranked.

Media contact: Ben Fineman, Editor, HauntBound, editor@hauntbound.com

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